


Give Your Heart a Break

by MissRaichyl



Series: Love Story [12]
Category: Glee
Genre: AU, Bar, F/M, Fate, Love at First Sight
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-10
Updated: 2017-08-10
Packaged: 2018-12-13 18:50:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,004
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11766153
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissRaichyl/pseuds/MissRaichyl
Summary: Here's the thing about love at first sight: you never know when it's going to strike you. It feels like you've been sucker punched by cupid's arrow. It's random and it's disorienting and that is exactly what happened.





	Give Your Heart a Break

The place is filled tonight, I think to myself as I look around the local bar. It was karaoke night, too, and living so close to the college meant there would be a lot of aspiring singers to try and attract agents- like that’s possible. I, on the other hand, am paying back a favor- a blind date set up by a guy in my class. I was a junior and even I realized that though I didn’t lack in the manly department, I did lack in sincerity and I need that if I’m going to be on stage. So here I was, on a Friday night, with a philosophy major who didn't know much about Queen or Broadway, redhead, small, pretty, you ask her about Leonardo DiCaprio or Shane West and she can list of facts of a million. Her name was Lydia Crest and she is not the one.

But she was funny so maybe I'd take her home, she'd leave her number and I'd throw it away- maybe I'd date her for a while to see if it would change anything, or maybe I'd just leave and call it a bust. But I won’t walk out- my mother taught me some manners after all. Growing up in Akron, Ohio, a not so small city, the lead of the glee club at one of the most prestigious high schools in the state, you get an ego boost or two; plus getting a full ride to two colleges of choice by leading the club to victory not once or twice but four times, it does something for a guy. My sister is a doctor and brother is a lawyer respectively, sibling rivalries set aside, we grew up well.

So, I sit here listening to the various people take the stage, talking to Lydia, whose voice wasn't that bad, not grating like some others I know, but not hypnotizing to say the least. I watch the people and I twirl my beer in my hands, the condensation making them cold. I take a drink and look around the place- at the bar there's a pretty blond fending off an indecent brunette guy, another brunette talking to two other guys, a well built guy with a razor cut- army no doubt, and . . . is that  _Brody?_  Huh, guess I wasn't the only guy brought here from NYADA tonight.

Knowing that it’s Brody, I take a little more attention to his company. Lydia is rambling on about her latest lecture and doesn’t seem to care that I’m not actually paying attention, so I scan his two friends. A small brunette, shorter than Lydia, hot from the back at least. The other dude looks stuck up, ARMY definitely. Looks like he is lives by a stick code of morals, doesn’t look to happy to be here- maybe feels out of place? Who cares? The girl though… I wonder if she looks good from the front too. I take another sip, not able to take my eyes off her.

Lydia seems to get I’m not actually paying her any attention and turns around, to see what’s behind her. “Like what you see?” My sight direction refocuses and she looks at me with amused eyes.

“Sorry- you were talking about lectures, right?” She laughs out loud and waves her hand.

“Kind of. Hey do want to call it and just be friends? No pressure?” I look at her differently for the first time all night and give her a genuine smile.

“Okay- sounds good.” She calls for two more beers and pulls out her phone. She quiet for once and turns away from me, staring more at the stage. It feels like friends- how interesting.

I return to watching the girl, her interaction with the two boys is different. With Brody, she seems close but not romantic, the other seems stressed, strained. A love triangle- not something to mess with. “You going to go for it?” I look at Lydia and smile.

“No- look at the dynamic. The group is a drama fest.”

“Looks like something you’d be into.” Her tone is flirty but her eyes are joking.

“Not since high school.” I sip my drink as the new ones reach the table.

"Oh, this looks promising." She says as Brody and Mystery Girl head for the stage. Then for the first time, I see her face and it hits me. She looks my way, barely catching my eyes but it's enough for the lights to dim and all I see is her as she takes the microphone and raises it to her lips. “Thought you said you’re not into her?”

I barely register her teasing remark. The girl is singing and the first sound has me by my throat and I wonder where she came from, if she did show choir and if she did, how come I never heard her because I knew that was a voice you didn't forget- even if it was singing a Lovato song. My eyes never faltered, even when the army dude moved into my line of vision. I stood up and walked around him, Lydia followed me because I guess we were companions for the night.

Brody started singing as I walked around the crowd, trying to find a good view. “You like her?” I shrugged and then she did this cute thing. The thing that girls do when they're flattered or embarrassed? The head down, hair behind ear. I felt a strong connection with a girl I never met, never even made random eye contact with. I couldn't look away even if I wanted to. I wasn't stupid- far from it. I knew that she had to be with one of the guys and probably had a good, long history with them- I didn't stand a chance, but then again, that never stopped me when I was a freshman and had the biggest crush on this senior, Olivia Bumot- nailed her by Christmas. I was just that good, maybe I won't stay out of this.

* * *

We stayed around not long after she finished her stage. "So...?" Her face looked at me, expectantly. 

"I don't know." I run a hand through my curls. "She looks taken- it will be hard to break through that."

She shoulder-bumped me, "don't go breaking couples up. Instant attraction isn't worth a broken jaw." I laugh and look the ground, nodding. Instant attraction- was that what this was? I thought it was just love at first sight, like the stories, but we're in the 21st century. We date via apps and honestly love at first sight is a myth. Only fools believe in it.

"You're right, though I would like to try. Maybe I'll win." I look at her with a smirk and she steps closer to me. 

"Maybe we can just take the night and you'll forget about her." Ah, I see now. This was her way of attaching to me. 

I took a step away from her and patted her shoulder. "No thanks." To her credit, she doesn't get upset, she just shrugs me off. 

"Jesse?" I hear his voice and turn around. Brody and the girl and army, plus two other guys that I hadn't noticed before. With my hands in my coat pocket, I shrugged. "What's up man?" He walks over to me, leaving his group behind- but I see interest has sparked in Mystery Girl's eyes. She feels it too? Whatever it is, he just gave me the perfect opening. 

"Not much, just a blind date." I tilt my head to Lydia, standing behind me, and she has the sense to know this was not and opening and stayed where she was. 

"Did you get the note from the seminar today? I felt like the teacher didn't have clue as to what she was going on about." I laugh and nod.

"Yeah, I'll drop them off at your place tomorrow. You working?" I realize I'm being stared at and let me eyes flit to the girl, who was staring at me. I smile at her and nod my head which gave her the courage and she comes up to Brody's side, leaving the ARMY man to the two boys.

"Brody, who's this?"  

He looks surprised and then smiles, clapping me on my shoulder, "This is Jesse- he works with me at the music shop and goes to NYADA with us." We look each other up and down and he goes on, "we have a class together and I need the notes." He laughs.

I reach out my hand and she stares at it for a second. "Don't be rude." I chide her and she laughs, reaching out. 

"I'm Rachel." Her voice is soft, velvety and smooth. I like it. I can't help not smiling at her. Our touch lasts a few extra seconds and ARMY guys stalks up, laying his arm across her shoulder. The boyfriend. I let go and switch my attention to Brody, not bothering with ARMY. The way to play this game was to leave her curious, make her think she is the one going for it- that's how to get her.

"Yeah, I'll be home after 5 though, music shops closing early for break, you know." Brody blew out a puff of air.

"I'll drop them by." He nods to me, and I to him- the universal guy acknowledgement.

"I have to get going, though. Lydia needs a ride home." As if it's a cue, she walks up to me without hesitation, looping her arm through mine. Rachel looks at it, taking a quick observation of that and I notice a spark of jealously register and I make sure her eyes meet mine, before I stare at his arm on her shoulder. Already setting boundaries. 

I wonder slightly what will happen. We just met, not even 10 minutes ago. I haven't said 10 words to the girl. I keep steady eye contact that the rest of the others take note and Rachel then shrugs off the arm. _Interesting_. I take my arm from Lydia in return and nod to the group behind him, "Nice singing, by the way." Rachel looked happy but still held her pride to her closely as I turned and walked away.

* * *

I'm at work and checking out a customer when the bell dings and in comes Rachel. I didn't actually think I'd see her again. I haven't seen her once since that night a few weeks ago but here she comes into the shop. Natalie helps her find a Broadway play on disc and we both kept staring after each other across the floor. Wondering.

She comes up to the register, "We sort of met a while back," I hear her, glance at her like I wasn't staring holes in her since she walked in, acting like that night wasn't seared into my memory. "Brody?" She pushes as I ring up the girl in front of her.

I snap and point at her, "Give Your Heart a Break?" I ask and she beams, "yeah, Brody's girl. I remember." 

She shrugs, "I'm not Brody's anything." I nod my head, acting like I didn't already know that. "I'm not dating the other one either." She's anxious. "You want to grab a drink?" No build up, nothing. She goes straight in for the kill. I look up from the cash register and if I'm nervous, I won't let it show.

"Yes." The girl leaves with her things and Rachel picks up a pack of gum and puts it with a song book and disc. I grab a pen from the holder and her receipt, "Call me and we'll meet up." I hand her the slip with my number and she bites her bottom lip, trying not to smile but I smile at her openly. She takes the paper from me and leaves. I take a big breath- this girl already has me wrapped around her finger. Natalie laughs across the store and I shoot her a look.

 

 


End file.
